this post was submitted on 04 Aug 2023
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Most chimneys in my neighborhood are open, thus water enters, yet fireplaces are blocked off. What happens to the water? (fedia.io)
submitted 1 year ago by ciferecaNinjo@fedia.io to c/homeimprovement@lemmy.world
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I have a few apparently cast-iron chimneys bedded in concrete. They have no hats on them. I’m not sure how the fireplaces were blocked off but it feels solid, as if they bricked them shut and plastered over it.

Isn’t this a bad idea? They don’t seem to be filling up with rainwater yet it rains quite heavily. I assume the fireplaces have been blocked off for over a decade at least. There must be quite an ecosystem of creepy crawlies going on in there.

So what if I want to open the fireplace back up and install a boiler, sewer vent, wood stove, kitchen range hood, or ventilation system? Can they be restored or must they just be treated as wasted dead space?

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[–] ciferecaNinjo@fedia.io 2 points 1 year ago

Going from memory, when I was standing on the roof I think at least the first few cm/inches are open. It might be hard to get close enough to stick my head in, but maybe I can toss a snake cam in for a better view.